Council Overrides Mayor’s Veto, Changes Zoning Board Makeup
Mayor Johnson calls move 'unnecessary and potentially detrimental.'
Common Council President José G. Pérez speaks at an October 2024 reckless driving press conference. Photo by Sophie Bolich.
The Milwaukee Common Council asserted its authority Tuesday by unanimously overriding a veto of Mayor Cavalier Johnson.
In doing so, the council changed the makeup of the citizen-led Board of Zoning Appeals (BOZA). The move won’t immediately change the membership of the board, but it will regulate who can be appointed in the future.
BOZA reviews more than 700 proposals per year, including approving the location of childcare providers, used-car dealerships and scrap yards and reviewing situations like fence heights and business signage requirements. It can become a source of frustration for council members because they have no formal authority in its decisions.
Common Council President José G. Pérez and Alderman DiAndre Jackson sponsored the change, which requires at least four of the seven members to have specific qualifications.
The current ordinance, governed by state statute, requires one of the members to be an attorney, but imposes no additional requirements. The new framework will maintain the attorney requirement and additionally require one member to be an architect, one member to have experience with public safety and one member to have a demonstrated interest in social welfare or housing issues.
“Given that their primary mission is to uphold the public’s health, safety and welfare, I thought it would be appropriate to propose this ordinance,” said Pérez to the City Plan Commission on Jan. 27. The commission unanimously endorsed the proposal, as did the council on Feb. 11.
Johnson vetoed the proposal on Feb. 19.
“This legislation unnecessarily and permanently constrains the membership of BOZA in a way that limits a representative, qualified, and diverse panel of city residents,” wrote Johnson. He said the restrictions were counterproductive and state law already manages the makeup.
“It is important to note that the current composition of BOZA, members that I have appointed and this council has confirmed, already does comply with the limitations this ordinance would impose. It is similarly significant to reiterate that the Common Council already has the ability to confirm or reject any nomination for membership a mayor were to put forward. Therefore, I have concluded this ordinance is both unnecessary and potentially detrimental,” wrote the mayor.
The current board members are chair Eric Lowenberg (attorney), vice chair Henry Szymanski (architect), Jennifer Current (landscape architect), Marjorie Rucker (executive director at The Business Council) and Lindsey St. Arnold Bell (executive director of Near West Side Partners). The alternates are Kevin Kuschel (head of the Clarke Square Neighborhood Initiative) and Michael Wright (a city resident and West Allis fire fighter). India Gaar serves as the board’s secretary and is the full-time administrator.
Gaar said she had no objections when the council’s zoning committee reviewed the proposal. “We [meaning BOZA] do already meet the requirements, so we have no issue with this,” she said.
Johnson previously attempted to move BOZA under the administration’s control, but the council blocked the move.
The BOZA change is part of a larger overhaul, led by Pérez, of how the city handles what are known as its “plural bodies.” Spurred by the number of vacancies at the board of the Housing Authority of the City of Milwaukee, the council already passed two other legislative changes. Most notably, if a board has required qualifications for individual seats, those seats should be filled before unrestricted seats. The requirements apply to both council and mayoral appointments. An additional change included the adoption of a uniform onboarding process.
BOZA meets monthly for what is a several-hours-long meeting with many public hearings. Members are paid $4,200 annually regardless of whether they are in full or alternate positions. The chair is paid $35,000.
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